Archive for January, 2012

Earth Day was created in 1970 to inspire organizations and individuals to demonstrate their commitment to the environment. This year, United Way of Southern Nevada’s Volunteer Center will promote environmental awareness on April 22 with a Day of Service. Tell us what your organization plans to do on Earth Day and we will post it on the special events section of our website. Earth Day gives Las Vegans an opportunity to not only serve their community, but to save their world, one project at a time. Helping the environment helps every one in it, so help your organization by going green!

Nominate an outstanding volunteer who shines and they will be placed in the Spotlight during National Volunteer Week April 15th – April 21st 2012. Volunteers may be nominated in one of the following categories: Corporate Group, Education, Group, Individual, Lifetime, National Service and Youth. Nominees will receive recognition although only one will be selected as the recipient in each category. Nominees and recipients will be featured in UWSN’s Volunteer Center Newsletter, through our social media networks and on the UWSN Volunteer Center website home page. Eligible recipients will also receive a Presidential Service Award Certificate and will be nominated for a Daily Points of Light award. All entries must be submitted by March 23rd 2012

United Way of Southern Nevada’s Volunteer Center hosts thousands of service projects throughout the year. From soup kitchens to clothing drives and everything in between, Las Vegans have so many opportunities to give back. Of all the current projects available, the Martin Luther King Jr. Day beautification project at City Impact Center caught my attention.

For some, Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday is a free day from school or work. Most forget the actual purpose of the day. Martin Luther King Jr Day is the only federal holiday observed as a national day of service. It is reserved as a time for Americans from all walks of life to work side by side to strengthen and improve their communities.

More than 200 volunteers pitched in to continue Dr. King’s legacy of equality, justice and peace for all. Children as young as five years old, UNLV students, Starbucks street teams and adults joined in the effort to celebrate the holiday by painting murals, cleaning apartments for senior citizens, landscaping the grounds and picking up trash around the campus at City Impact Center (950 E. Sahara Ave). I spoke to several volunteers to find out why it was important to serve on their day off and a single message resonated: to follow Dr. King’s footsteps by helping and serving others.

The Volunteer Center website was upgraded in November. As part of the upgrade, your volunteer history should have been transferred over to our new system. Please log into your account athttp://Volunteer.UWSN.org and check your history under “My Account.” If the information is incorrect, please contact jacobm@uwsn.org.

Additionally, please make sure that you are confirming your attendance at projects and providing feedback on your experiences through our interactive website.

If you have not visited the website since the upgrade, you may need to reset your password. To reset your password, click on “Login” at the top right of the webpage, enter in your email address, and select “Forgot Password?” Instructions will then be emailed to you.

January 16, 2012 will mark the Martin Luther King, Jr holiday. Since 1994, this day has been a day of national service that calls for Americans to work together “to provide solutions to our most pressing national problems” (MLKDAY.gov). On this day, Americans are encouraged to move the country closer to the MLK’s vision of a “Beloved Community”.

In southern Nevada, the United Way of Southern Nevada’s Volunteer Center will be commemorating this day of service at the City Impact Center of Las Vegas. This organization “encourages, empowers and equips the people in our community to better themselves and their families” (CityImpactLV.com). The project will bring together community members from all over southern Nevada to help revitalize the valuable community resource center. Volunteers will have the chance to interact with the families that are served by this organization, and will be reminded of the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, during a post-event BBQ.
To help carry on the tradition and work of Dr. King, please sign up for this opportunity at the United Way of Southern Nevada’s Volunteer Center website at http://volunteer.uwsn.org or by clicking http://t.co/oE7t2s8R .